The Art of Getting Bent by M. Sahm is a cleverly dark, thought-provoking novel that centers around the ultimate addiction, one that transforms a young man's love into a glimpse at god-strength.
It is the year 2020, and humanity as we know it no longer exists. Sixteen years prior, the world was struck by a plague that annihilated millions. The only effective countermeasures divided mankind into Splices (those enhanced with animal genetics) and Cypures (those who wear cybernetic suits). In Vitellus City, the exotic breeds must now mix with the radical technologians.
Serico is a half-chameleon Splice who works as a DJ at one of the hottest dance clubs in the city. He discovers that when he's intoxicated, he is able to exist on another level of reality where he can manipulate his love of turntablism to spectacular effect. However, beings from that plane are coming after him - some to entice Serico further into the otherworld, others to eradicate him from it.
The DJ forms a dysfunctional friendship with Amaretta Jones, a young, aggressive waitress searching for new beginnings. The city is also home to Dr. Def Mechlin, an enigmatic and wealthy scientist looking for the murderer of his apprentice; and Tiberius Tagonist, a psychotic fugitive plotting genocide. Each character's obsessive path crosses with Serico's to forever alter his future. Welcome to the city where addiction is king.
On one level, The Art of Getting Bent is a hard-boiled parable about the perils of overindulgence and vengeance in a land without sympathy: "collective chaos that is tightly packed, where cash flow is king, and no one makes eye contact." But it is also a finely woven thriller peppered with inventive sci-fi themes and witty dialogue, where every decision bends reality a little bit further.
About the Author
M. Sahm works in New York City. This is his first novel.
